Monuments
\r\nHardly ever come up bands having the personality and the quality of MERCIFUL FATE. Even in the golden decade of 80s, where an elation of inspiration and creativity existed, the band from Denmark succeeded in distinguishing itself by presenting something completely different, something which had never been heard before and, according to my humble opinion, has never been heard since then.
\r\nIn the history of Heavy Metal exist innumerable groups "comets" that as long as fast they were appeared, so much fast they were disappeared. One of them is HITTMAN. The group from New York released their first homonymous album in 1988 and made their presence perceptible in the metal scene, leaving a lot of promises for the future.
\r\nA long time ago, in Tamba, Florida, two brothers, John and Criss Oliva, create a “small” group called METROPOLIS. With John on guitar (!!) and John on bass (!!), METROPOLIS, passed their time playing for high school parties and at small neighborhood pubs. I imagine neither both of them, nor none of their friends who support them, would dream that this “small group” would become one of the LEGENDARY bands of heavy metal history. \r\n
\r\nI always had a great sympathy to VICIOUS RUMORS and this was because they had an element that first of all I want a band to have….quality. Very good musicians, perfect compositions and overall very good productions, were the things that always characterized the band. \r\n
\r\nRIOT. A name heavy as history. A history of 31 whole years, full of raw, pure, qualitive Heavy Metal. The youngers met them in 1988 with the amazing "Thundersteel", but before this they had already a long way, thus it is bettter to take things from the beggining. \r\n
\r\nMetal! Heavy, Pure, raw stuff!! What else can we say about legendary ANVIL? The whole American metal scene from the mid 80’s and so, have them as an icon. Bands that nowadays are regarded (anyway!!) as bigger than life such as Metallica and Megadeth, obey them!!Founded in Canada (Toronto) at 1978, they had already tried to discover music, back to 1972. Only their hometown, seems to be the warranty for them! Their guitarist and singer Lips, changed the name of his group from LIPS…to ANVIL.
\r\nAll of us know that the fathers of Heavy Music Style are Black Sabbath. We all know as well, that Candlemass, cutting off some specific elements, are their best kids, the descendants who continued and expanded the vested, which existed until then, creating a new shade of sound, al least merchantly. Before them, however, there were some other groups, which played doom, prior to the leak and the spreading of this term.
\r\nOne of the bands that their last offerings to the art, their "swan chants", is best of their career. It is used in these cases that doors open for the street of success, the recognition, the money and the glory. This is something that exists constantly, but not for HEAVY LOAD. After the release of the specific album, with which in my opinion reached the peak of their creativity (and after two years later they released one single 45’’ with 2 songs), internal problems and disagreements between them led the band to split-up.
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\r\nIn the middle of the pro-past decade, the music events, were moving with breakneck speeds. Sound was becoming faster, heavier, while influences from other music genres (most of them unknown for hard), had already changed and driven to other roads and musical forms.
\r\nEspecially in America or better for the colossal bands to succeed in the American market, they were forced to change their sound, moving to more commercial forms. Examples of JUDAS PRIEST, SAXON, IRON MAIDEN sustain this truth, while other bands were already thought to be old fashioned.